Raines hires ex-Fannie Mae lobbyist

The embattled ex-chief executive of Fannie Mae has turned to one of the housing giant’s past senior lobbyists for help.

Franklin Raines, who was forced out of Fannie Mae in 2004 during its accounting scandal, has hired Maloney Government Relations. The firm was founded by Bob Maloney, the former vice president of government relations for Fannie Mae who is listed as the sole lobbyist for Raines.  

{mosads}Maloney will help Raines with “hearing preparation,” according to disclosure forms filed with the Senate Office of Public Records on Christmas Eve.

Maloney is considered to have close ties to members of the Congressional Black Caucus. At Fannie Mae he launched a tradition of hosting receptions honoring chairmen and members of the CBC. Maloney lobbied for the housing giant up until 2007, according to forms.

This will not be the first time Raines has personally retained lobbyists. Throughout 2007, the law firm of Williams & Connolly, on behalf of Raines, hired Clyburn Consulting. That firm is run by William Clyburn, who is the cousin of House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.). Earning fees of about $110,000, the lobby firm monitored financial services legislation for Raines, according to public records.

Raines has often been a target of Congress as it has examined the collapse of the housing market, which many blame on Fannie Mae and the other government-sponsored housing company, Freddie Mac.

The former executive appeared before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee this month and faced tough questions from lawmakers over his role in the housing crisis.

The new lobbying contract could signal that Raines believes he will have to testify in front of Congress again next year.

In April, Raines paid nearly $25 million to settle a lawsuit with the federal government over his involvement in Fannie Mae’s accounting scandal. He, however, denied any wrongdoing.

The two corporations have been charged with aggressively pushing subprime loans to those who could not afford homes, which led to record foreclosures this year. At the congressional hearing this month, Raines blamed regulators for the housing market collapse by encouraging Fannie Mae and others to expand into the riskier loans. Both Fannie and Freddie were taken over by the federal government this September in a deal worth up to $200 billion.

Raines became an election-year issue when the Republican presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) ran a television ad charging the former Fannie Mae executive was a close adviser to President-elect Obama. Obama’s campaign denied the charge.

Messages left for Maloney and attorneys at Williams & Connolly were not returned.